


Hercule et Omphale

by Caracalliope



Category: Le Comte de Monte-Cristo | Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
Genre: Conflict, Crossdressing, F/F, Post-Canon, class
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-29
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-06-07 14:26:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15221147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caracalliope/pseuds/Caracalliope
Summary: “There now,” said Eugénie, “while I change my costume do you lock the portmanteau.” Louise pressed with all the strength of her little hands on the top of the portmanteau.“But I cannot,” said she; “I am not strong enough; do you shut it.”“Ah, you do well to ask,” said Eugénie, laughing; “I forgot that I was Hercules, and you only the pale Omphale!”(Chapter 97. The Departure for Belgium)





	Hercule et Omphale

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Alona](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alona/gifts).



To tame Eugénie would be the work of decades. It would require a strength that Louise lacks and a cruelty that she abhors. And Louise doesn’t want Eugénie shackled in any way, not by love or friendship, and certainly not by pity for Louise’s dependant position.

But, they barely meet since Eugénie started gambling.

Eugénie’s walk is heavy. Louise can tell that she has lost at cards again. For a beat, and another, Eugénie hesitates at the door of their bedroom. Louise beckons her in.

Eugénie collapses on the bed, dramatic now that she knows herself welcome. Louise smiles and kneels to help with her boots.

“Dearest,” Eugénie says, “men are no less exhausting now that they are vying for my purse rather than my favor.”

It would be crass for Louise to say that Eugénie’s funds were always a part of her suitors’ calculations. Instead, she asks directly:

“Why fight them at all, if you’re exhausted?”

Louise touches her strong thighs through the fabric of the pantaloons, and Eugénie responds to both the touch and the question.

“They know me as Léon d’Armilly. They smirk at my name - or my lack of one. Why should I not teach these - these patricians - to respect a young artist from an honest family?”

“Respect - at the gambling table?” Louise covers her mouth, but can’t take the words back. Then she takes a moment, chooses her next words carefully. “I know you like to guard my honor on distant battlefields. But I prefer it when you serve my pleasure at home.”

Eugénie laughs, startled, unladylike, and Louise presses a kiss to her knee.

“You should do as you like,” Louise concludes, and the brightness in Eugénie’s eyes warms her up.

“I will,” Eugénie promises, and lifts Louise up to sit on her lap.


End file.
